Tubular magazine firearm



NOV. 25, 1941. F, F, BURTON 2,263,918

TUBULAR MAGAZINE FIREARM Filed Oct. 8, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet l Nov. '25. 1941.

Filed pct. a, 195s F. F. BURTON TUBULAR MAGAZINE FIREARM 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Nov. 25, 1941 treo etres '1M-ENT orrice nonnina MAGAZINE :liviana-.RM

Frank'RBurton, Mount Carmel, .Connmassignoig by mesne assignments, to `Western Cartridge Company, va corporation of `Delaware Applicationctober 8, 1938,?ScrialfNo.,.2'33,940

(Cl. k12-.17)

6 Claims.

As will lloe apparent irom the following -considered in ,conjunction with the accompanying drawings, the present invention isvconcerned with a construction and organization of parts wherein `.the tubular-magazine -located longitudinally -in the buttstock is automatically aligned with :the magazine-throat or cartridge-feeding Ypassage .forming a corporate part of the barrel-unit,when

the said barrel-unit and stock-unit are coupled together.

Therefore, one of lthemain objects ofthe pres- -ent invention `is t provide a `superior tubularmagazine rearrn .construction wherein simple, reliable and elective means '-is Yprovided `for -properly 'locating the tubular-magazine with respect vto a Amagazin@throat, -or ythe like, incorporated in the receiver or frame -of the ,-rearm.

A further object of the present invention is to provide superior means, which may -be `produced at a low cost formanufacture, 4whereby'thetubular-magazine is provided with self-faligningmeans for aligning the said tubularfmagaz'ine with respeot to a magazine-throat, or'the'lle,andwhich will Aautomatically 'adjust itself with Arespect to the said .magazine-throat to compensate for variation in manufacture as well as for warpage ofthe stock.

With the above Iandother objects in view, as will appear .to those skilled in the art from the rpresent disclosure, lthis invention includes all -ffeatures in the said disclosure which are novel over the prior art and lwhich are not claimed in any separateapplication.

In the accompanying drawings, in which certain modes of carrying out the present invention-are shown forillustrative purposes:

Fig. 1 is a view in side elevation jo'f a takedown firearm embodying vthe present invention;

Fig. 2 is a broken view, partly in side elevation and partly in vertical central-longitudinal section of the rearrn shownin Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional View taken on the line 3--3 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a broken side elevational view .of .the rear portion of the barrel-unit, detached;

Fig, 5 isa broken View, partly in side elevation and partly `in vertical central-longitudinal section of the stock-unit, detached;

Fig. 6 is a top-plan view thereof.;

yward portion vof fthe tubular housing-v-member; `and 'Fig. i8 is 'a broken perspectiveiview of :the rear portionfofthey tubular housing-member.

.Theiparticularfrearm hereinchosen for illustration of the present invention is of the ztakedown type land vincludes a A.stock-unitgenerally `designated :by the reference .character Hl :and 4having a `buttstock-,portion rH and *a forestock- .portion lf2 integral therewith. 'Mounted-:upon fthe upper facefof fthe Asaid forestock-,portion l:l2 :is 1a fbar-.rel-unit generally Adesignated v:by lthe `reference character .I z3 and 'including la tubular :receiver or rframe :I4 to the-forward end :of which .isrig-idly secureda'barrelproper f1.5.

The particular character fof the mechanism -contained within the re'ceiveror frame 14x-forms Ano .essential `feature of thefpresent invention,:but,

Afas-shown in thefdrawings,.the receiver |14 `accomrnodates a reciprocating breech-,bolt t5 visible .through a Alongitudinal ejection-opening +1 Vformed :in the side ,wall of fthe .said receiver. .The said breech-bolt L6 isprovided with ,aboltoperating handle .i8 -which extends Aoutwardly I through a longitudinal passage I9 also :formed in.the-side wall of therecei-ver 7l 4.

The receiver 44, V-in vaddition to lcontaining part :of the working .mechanism v(not shown) of the firearm, also contains a magazine-throat 20, .or rthe like, formed .wthacartridge-feeding*passage ,and .which Yat its `rear end is provided with a cylindrical portion 2l for the ,purpose -as iwill be hereinafter described. The magazine-throat just referred to, is rigidly secured -in place inthe receiver i4 in ,anysuitable mannerand is adapted to ,guide cartridges fed from the magazine to a position where they may ,be easily .inserted into Vthe cartridge-chamber of the -rearm by the forward movement .of .the breech-bolt I6.

.Adjacent the forward Vend 4of the -receiver ld, the .barrel .L5 is provided on .its'under face with a Vdepending stock attaching-lug .22 rigidly fsecured to vthe -said barrel :and fitting -into va "socket .23 .extending downwardly .from ia longitudinal groove .24 formed in theupper face-of the'forestock-.portion |12 of 4the stock-unit |10 :for the reception of the barrel-unit .I-3. jExtending -upwardly through an escutcheon 25 mounted in the under face of `the forestock-portion `l2, is a `screw y2Ei vthreaded into :the `lower -portion :of thelug22.

,As kwillbe seen byreferenceitol'ig.V 2the-vstockunit .I0 is .provided with a :relatively-deep I clearancegroove 2?! which `extends :downwardly :from

Fig. I'I is a `broken perspective view of thefor- 55 therear-prbonf the bottom wailinftheigroove 24 and having a length substantially corresponding to the full length of the receiver I4. The bottom of the clearance-groove 21 is intersected by a Vertical clearance-passage 28 through which extends a trigger 29 accommodated partly in the clearance-passage 28 and partly in the clearance-groove 21. The trigger 29 is pivoted upon a pivot-pin 3D mounted in the stock-unit Ill and has its finger-piece enclosed by the usual looplike trigger-guard 3| secured to the under face of the said stock-unit.

The buttstock portion of the stock-unit I is also provided with a longitudinal magazineclearance passage 32 which at its inner or forward end intersects the longitudinal clearancegroove 21 in axial alignment with the magazine- `throat 26 and which opens at its outer or rear Cil end into a spherically-contoured recess 33. The

recess 33 just referred to, accommodates the similarly-contoured portion 34 of a buttplate 36 secured to the rear face of the kbuttstock-portion II by means of screws 31-31. The provision of the spherically-contoured recess 33 and the similarly-formed portion 34 in the buttplate 36, results in the formation of a finger-clearance recess 35.

The magazine-clearance passage 32 is adapted to receive a tubular-magazine generally designatedbyrthe reference character 38 and substantially smaller in diameter than the said clearance-passage and in axial alignment with the magazine-throat 2U before referred to. The said magazine includes a tubular housing-member 39 and a tubular cartridge-receiving member 4I]Y normally located within the said housing-memi ner permitting the ready retraction or removal of the said cartridge-receiving member from the housing-member 30.

Adjacent its outer or rear end, the housing- The said magazine-head is secured to the member 39 has rigidly secured thereto a magazine-retaining member or bushing 42 soldered or otherwise secured to the said housing-member. The magazine-retaining member just referred to, includes an externally-threaded annular sleeve 43 within which the housing-member 39 snugly nts and to which it is rigidly attaohed, and a flange 44. The flange 44 seats against the rear face of the spherically-contoured portion 34 of the buttplate 36 and is retained in place by an internally-threaded collar 45 which may seat at its rear edge against the front face of the spherically-contoured portion 34 of the buttplate 36, as is particularly wellshown in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

The housing-member 39 is provided at its forward or inner end with an upwardly-facing abutment-lip 46 of semi-circular form in cross-section and which is adapted to engage the under face of the cylindrical portion 2|, before referred to, formed at the rear of the magazine-throat ZU, as is particularly well-shown in Figs. 2. and

3 of the drawings. The abutment-lip 46 just referred to, is yieldingly held in engagement with the cylindrical portion 2| of the magazine-throat 2U, by means of a helical spring 41 seated in an upwardly-opening pocket 48 extending downwardly from the clearance-groove 21 in the forestock-portion. The upper end of the said spring bears against the under face of the. forward end of the housing-member 39 of the tubular-magazine 38. The spring 41 constantly urges the forward end 38D of the tubular-magazine 38 upwardly, the said magazine being restrained however, in proper axial alignment with the magazine-throat 26, by the engagement of the abutment-lip 46 with the cylindrical portion 2| of the said magazine-throat, which alignment ensures the proper passage into the magazine-throat of cartridges 49 contained within the cartridge-receiving member 4U. The cartridges 49 are constantly being urged forwardly by a magazine-follower 56 under the tension of a spring 5| of the general type customarily employed in tubular-magazines.

From the foregoing it will be readily seen that the magazine will always be in proper alignment with the magazine-throat even in the event of warpage of the stock as the magazine is free to be deflected though still maintaining its proper position in respect to the said magazine-throat due to its own flexibility and the flexibility of the buttplate 36 and the connection of the magazine thereto. As will be readily apparent by reference to the drawings,r the flexing of the magazine is permitted by the free fit of the tubularmagazine 38 in the magazine-clearance passage 32. The attaching of the magazine at the rear end thereof to the buttsock-portion leaves the forward or inner end free. to be exed for proper alignment with the magazine-throat as will hereinafter appear. It will be noted that by the construction employed, the tubular-magazine will align itself with respect to the magazine-throat when the barrel-unit is secured in coupled relationship to the stock-unit of the firearm.

By reference to Fig. 5 of the drawings it will be seen that when the barrel-unit I3 is uncoupled from the stock-unit I6 the tubular-magazine 38 will be deflected upwardly under the urge of the helical spring 41 or by the pre-set tension of the parts, from the position indicated by broken lines in the said ligure (in which position the tubular-magazine is normally restrained by the magazine-throat 26), to the position shown in full lines in the figure referred to. When the stock-unit is separated from the barrel-unit I3, the upward deflection of the tubularmagazine will be limited by the pivot-pin 36, but the tubular-magazine may readily be deected downwardly by the cylindrical portion 2| of the magazine-throat 29 when the barrel-unit I3 is installed in place upon the stock-unit I0.

When the barrel-unit I3 is installed in its proper position relative to the stock-unit, the cylindrical portion 2| of the magazine-throat 2|) engages with the abutment-lip 46 with the result that the forward end, of the tubular-magazine is depressed against the tension of the helical spring 41 which constantly urges the forward end of the said magazine upwardly thereby holding the abutment-lip 46 in engagement with the cylindrical portion 2| when the barrel-unit |3 is being installed upon the stock-unit I0.

By providing the structure above-described it will be apparent that the proper alignment of the tubular-magazine with respect to the bore or other cartridge-feeding passage in the magazinethroat is assured by means of the flexible mounting of the said tubular-magazine and the helical spring which is preferably installed beneath the said magazine. It is possible, therefore, to leave a sumcient gap between the rear end of the magazine-throat and the forward end of the magazine proper to allow for variation in manufacture as well as in providing compensation for warpages or other irregularities in the stock itself.

Another advantage in employing the construction shown and described is that the barrel-unit comprising the receiver and barrel proper may be readily uncoupled from the stock-unit for transportation, cleaning or the like and then reinstalled upon the stock-unit with the magazine properly aligned with the magazine-throat without any special adjustments or care on the part of the user of the firearm.

The invention may be carried out in other specic ways than those herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention, and the present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.

I claim:

1. A takedown tubular-magazine firearm-construction including in combination: a barrel-unit having a barrel and also a member provided with a cartridge-feeding passage located below the said barrel and constructed and arranged to register I with the cartridge-delivery opening of a tubularmagazine, the said member also being provided with a magazine-engaging abutment engageable with a stop-abutment of a tubular-magazine; a stock-unit extending beneath the said barrelunit; a tubular-magazine carried by the said stock-unit with capacity for lateral movement toward and away from the said barrel-unit, the said tubular-magazine being provided with a cartridge-delivery opening normally registering with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said member of the barrel-unit, the said tubularmagazine also being provided with a stop-abutment positioned to engage with the magazineengaging abutment of the said member of the barrel-unit when the cartridge-delivery opening of the said tubular-magazine registers with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said member of the barrel-unit; and spring-means pressing the said tubular-magazine laterally to yieldingly engage the stop-abutment thereof with the magazine-engaging abutment of the said member of the barrel-unit to thereby maintain the cartridge delivery opening of the said tubular-magazine in registry with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said member of the barrel-unit.

2. A takedown tubular-magazine rearm-construction as defined in claim 1 and in which the spring-means specied is in the form of a compression-spring thrusting in opposite directions respectively against the said stock and against the said tubular-magazine.

3. A takedown tubular-magazine iirearm-construction including in combination; a barrel-unit having a barrel and also a member provided with a cartridge-feeding passage located below the said barrel and constructed and arranged to register with the cartridge-delivery opening of a tubular-magazine, the said member also being provided with a downwardly-facing magazineengaging abutment engageable with an upwardlyfacing stop-abutment of a tubular-magazine; a stock-unit extending beneath the said barrelunit; a tubular-magazine carried by the said stock-unit with capacity for lateral movement toward and away from the said barrel-unit, the said tubular-magazine being provided with a cartridge-delivery opening normally registering with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said member of the barrel-unit, the said tubularmagazine also being provided with an upwardlyfacing stop-abutment positioned to engage with the downwardly-facing magazine-engaging abutment of the said member of the barrel-unit when the cartridge-delivery opening of the said tubular-magazine registers with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said member of the barrel-unit; and spring-means pressing the said tubularmagazine upwardly to yieldingly urge the upwardly-facing stop-abutment thereof into engagement with the downwardly-facing magazineengaging abutment of the said member of the barrel-unit to thereby maintain the cartridgedelivery opening of the said tubular-magazine in registry with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said member of the barrel-unit.

4. A takedown tubular-magazine firearm-construction as defined in claim 3 and in which the spring-means specified is in the form of a compression-spring thrusting downwardly upon the said stock and upwardly against the said tubularmagazine.

5. A takedown tubular-magazine firearm-construction including in combination: a barrel-unit having a barrel and also a receiver provided with a cartridge-feeding passage located below the said barrel and constructed and arranged to register with the cartridge-delivery opening of a tubular-magazine, the said receiver also being provided with a magazine-engaging abutment engageable with a stop-abutment of a tubularmagazine; a stock-unit extending beneath the said barrel-unit; a tubular-magazine carried by the said stock unit with capacity for lateral movement toward and away from the said barrelunit, the said tubular-magazine being provided with a cartridge-delivery opening normally registering with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said receiver of the barrel-unit, the said tubularmagazine also being provided with a stop-abutment positioned to engage with the magazineengaging abutment of the said receiver of the barrel-unit when the cartridge-delivery opening of the said tubular-magazine registers with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said receiver; and spring-means pressing the said tubularmagaaine laterally to yieldingly urge the stopabutment thereof into engagement with the magazine-engaging abutment of the said receiver of the barrel-unit to thereby maintain the cartridge-delivery opening of the said tubularmagazine in registry with the cartridge-feeding passage in the said receiver of the barrel-unit.

6. A takedown tubular-magazine firearm-construction as deiined in claim 5 and in which the spring-means specified is in the form of a compression-spring thrusting in opposite directions respectively against the said stock and against the said tubular-magazine.

FRANK F. BURTON. 

